


Just a Second

by silkinsilence



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Angst, Brotp
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-10
Updated: 2014-07-10
Packaged: 2018-02-08 07:05:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 622
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1931319
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/silkinsilence/pseuds/silkinsilence
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Life is ephemeral. Comfort is an illusion. Everyone betrays you eventually.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Just a Second

_It’s funny, isn’t it?_

_It’s funny how easy it is to forget painful truths when faced with a comforting alternative. It’s funny how easy it is for the imaginary world to shatter._

_Welcome back to reality, to the reality you tried to escape._

"Katara. Katara!"

"I’m sorry, Princess Azula. We did everything we could, but her injuries were too—"

"If you value your life, you’ll stop speaking." Azula’s voice is soft and deadly as she turns, blue flame in hand, eyes positively murderous. The healer takes the hint and leaves the room hastily. Azula stares after him, wishing she had killed him, wishing she had burned him. What was she supposed to  _do_  with the pressure building inside of her? What was she supposed to  _say_  when she had never felt pain like this before?

Ursa had been easy. Ursa had never cared about her anyway. Zuko leaving had meant she would inherit the throne. Mai and Ty Lee…their betrayal had been horrific, but not like this. She had turned her anger inward, tried to find a logical explanation. She didn’t mourn their loss. She mourned her weakness.

But this? Death wasn’t supposed to  _happen_  yet! Katara was strong, even if she was reckless and foolish and shortsighted and hotheaded… 

"You said that real friendship meant you would never betray me. You  _liar_! What do you call  _this_? What do I do  _now_?”

She had never cried for another person before. Was that what was happening? Was that why her eyes were clouding over, why her cheeks were wet? It hurt. Why was she hurting so much? Bruises and cuts and burns didn’t hurt this much. What was this pain?

Her hands buried themselves in the roots of her hair and pulled and pulled and pulled. Her nails found her skin and her teeth found the sides of her mouth. Azula pulled herself apart from the seams.

But it didn’t go away.  ** _Why wasn’t it going away_**? Physical pain wasn’t chasing away the emotional pain this time. It was getting worse and worse and worse as she stared at the unmoving form on the bed and felt blood trickle down her arms from self-inflicted scratches.

_Get up. Get up and tell me to stop. You didn’t like it when I did that, so stop me._

Katara didn’t.

Azula let out a monstrous howl, still clutching herself. She kicked and flailed wildly and flung fire without a care. The furniture caught; the furniture burnt.

_I’m destroying things. You don’t like that. Tell me to stop!_

Katara didn’t.

_"Get up!"_  Azula roared. 

Katara didn’t.

"I hate you. I hate you  _I hate you_   **I hate you**   _ **I hate you**_  I _HATE YOU_!”

A poisonous voice crept back into the depths of Azula’s mind, the self-deprecating monster that had lurked there for as long as she could remember. Katara had helped abate it. Now she was gone.

_Do you remember now?_

She climbed onto the bed and shook Katara by the shoulders, bidding her to open her eyes, ordering her to open her eyes.

_Other people hurt._

Katara was limp, as if she was stuffed with cotton instead of made out of flesh and bones. But her skin was the same color it had been in life.

_You can’t rely on anything not to betray you. The only person you can rely on is yourself. You forgot, you silly little nitwit. You thought you could be happy with other people. You thought she wouldn’t hurt you._

_She did before and she did again._

Azula released Katara’s form and sunk down, her face blank and open, tears glinting in the firelight. The room burned around her. She didn’t really notice.

_I want to die too._


End file.
